COLUMN: Zedd brings fresh beats back to LA with his latest album
In the midst of his worldwide “True Colors” tour, the Grammy Award-winning international DJ Zedd marked his return to Los Angeles with a sold-out show at the Staples Center Friday night.
If you have ever jammed out to a Zedd song I bet you have experienced a fleeting moment of synesthesia. At least, I know I did. The intended goal of each of the tracks of the 26-year-old musical phenomenon Anton Zaslavski, is to transport listeners to a place where color, feelings and sound fuse for a short moment. And, never has he hit the nail harder on the head than with his headlining concert tour launched in support of his sophomore studio album True Colors, which dropped May 18.
The tour is on track to gain up as much publicity as the album at this point, considering the amount of special guests that are bound to show up for his sets. So far, Zedd has hosted The Chainsmokers, Benny Benassi, DVBBS, Audien and 3LAU, but Friday night’s guest might be the biggest of the tour. Steve Angello, a former member of the Swedish electronic trio, Swedish House Mafia, stopped by to perform an amazing set to a sold-out crowd. Only the presence of one third of the trio was enough to take me back to their farewell concert, “One Last Tour.” Though there is still some speculation over who will be Zedd’s next special guests, Friday night was most definitely a treat.
Between the ridiculous stage production, Zedd asked the crowd, “Los Angeles, are you ready?” before opening up the party with “Beautiful Now.” At one point, the audience chanted, “ba-ba-ba ba-ba-ba-ba-pa ba-ba-ba ba-pa…” as he performed his latest single. He incorporated colorful lasers, kaleidoscope illusions and smoke that filled the Staples Center when the beat dropped and made me feel as if I was transported to Coachella’s Sahara Tent, a tent that is its own world. Yet, I did not find the visuals nor the pounding beats the most beautiful aspects of the show. What I found most beautiful was the diversity of the audience. Next to me stood two twenty-something girls’ who were dressed in glitter, face paint and sparkly bustiers. Behind me, sat a mother with her two teenage sons who clearly wanted to leave as soon as possible. In front of me where three middle-aged women carrying large purses who had clearly left work early to enjoy the show. Essentially, the audience consisted of people of all different ages, attitudes, and colors. As I stood alone in the raving crowd, I stopped and realized the people around me did not seem to have anything in common, and I loved it.
For the next two hours, L.A.’s partyphiles waved multi-colored light sticks. Personally, I am not a big fan of these, but they definitely enhanced the moment. Zedd performed his chart-topping hits “I Want You To Know,” which features Zedd’s former girlfriend Selena Gomez on the vocals, “Clarity” and “Spectrum,” both which are featured in his 2012 debut album. Aside from his original tracks, the Russian-German DJ also remixed other popular party songs including Clean Bandit’s “Rather Be,” Coldplay’s “A Sky Full of Stars” and Magic’s “Rude.” Zedd’s personal take on these hits is on point. I can easily picture myself driving through the I-10 jamming to his remix of Bastille’s “Pompeii,” which was my personal favorite and a crowd pleaser as well.
True Colors is a catchy and accessible album with sounds that could possibly open the door to a new style of electronic music and appeal to the general public to break through on pop radio. Of course, Zedd has gotten a good amount of love from his electronic music buddies. But the fact that he is making electronic music more “musical,” is the characteristic that separates him from most electronic acts. Many artists focus on creating tracks that will make party-goers bounce and dance. Basically, go crazy. But Zedd is mainly interested in crafting well-developed melodies, in melting sounds and textures. Zedd’s songs do not follow the conventions of electronic music, and even when he’s playing live, he takes a step to make his concerts a different experience from his albums. You can find pictures and videos from the event, yet they will barely do the live production justice — but it will have to do.
The North American leg of Zedd’s “True Colors” tour continues through October.
Ikram Navia is a junior majoring in broadcast and digital journalism. Her column, “Fresh Beats,” runs every other Monday.